Half a World away
by sailanis
Summary: Jesse Travis is needed for help. But this time he has to travel a long way to get to his patients. What awaits him half a world away?
1. What you gonna do when they come for you

**Disclaimer:** Neither the characters nor anything that has to do with the Show. No money is made with this.

**Author's Note:** This is the first chapter of a story that's going to be a bit longer. 95 % of it are finished. What the story needs most right now is a beta reader. Unfortunately I do not know anyone whose first language is English. So if anyone is interested in doing the job, I would be really glad and thankful.

Apart from that I hope you enjoy this story!

**Summary:** When an old friend of Mark appears, Jesse gets an offer to help out in a place far away. He is desperately needed, but he has no idea what is expecting him.

A warm breeze brushed Jesse Travis' arm as he stepped out of the small airplane. He stared at the airport, then looked into the sky, blinking, as the sun stared back at him. He had seen that big, hot, yellow sun before, at Kairo Airport, but his journey had not ended there. It had not felt real, not yet. He had seen a lot of foreign people, most of them with olive skin colour and black hair, but there had been tourists as well. But this was different.

"Sir? Excuse me, Sir, would you…?"

A woman, dressed in a plain white blouse, shoved Jesse slightly to the side. She passed him, walking down the few steps of the gangway that connected the plane's entrance from the ground. When she reached the bottom of the steps, she turned around, smiling at Jesse. "You are new here?"

Jesse nodded. He was new here. New in this city, new in this country, new on this continent. It still felt unreal. 24 hours ago, he had been in Los Angeles, having a farewell-drink with his best friends. They had joked about Jesse missing his flight, catching some strange disease or stumbling into the only murder case within the next 60 miles. It was possible. So many things were possible, and he had absolutely no idea what. Sure, he had read about the situation in Sudan before he came here, he had spoken to other doctors who had taken part in the programme, but actually he had no idea what to expect. Part of him felt uneasy, but most of all he felt excited.

"I am. I just arrived. I mean…I obviously just arrived."

"That's why you are still enjoying the view? You will see this sun a lot, I promise you. Even from down here."

"From…? Oh! Yeah, right." Jesse climbed down the steps, realising that he had stood there for quite some time. There had not been many passengers, and Jesse was one of the last ones to leave the small plane, so no one else really bothered him standing in the way. The woman smiled at him. She had blonde hair, turning into grey and small wrinkles around her eyes and her nose. Jesse was not sure how old she was, maybe forty-something, or where she came from. He had heard a slight accent when she had spoken but could not say what kind of accent it was.

When he reached her, she shook his hand. "Hi, I am Anna Jensen. And your name is?"

"Jesse Travis", he answered.

"Ah, Dr. Travis. We have been expecting you." She gave him another smile, then turned around, heading for the border control. Jesse stood there for a moment, puzzled. He was not sure where she knew him from, until he realised that she probably belonged to the project, too. He followed her and in a few big strides reached her.

"So, you are from 'Doctors without borders' as well?"

It had all started one afternoon. After a long shift, Jesse spent his pause at the doctor's lounge. More than 24 hours had passed since he had last seen his bed, 24 hours filled with patients that were more or less injured or ill. He was hungry, unnerved and most of all tired. So instead of eating he had decided that a cup of coffee would serve him best. He had a big cup of this black, aromatic beverage in his hand, sitting on the sofa, when Mark entered. With him came a man, a few years younger than Mark, with sun-tanned skin and a tousled beard.

"Ah, there you are. We have been searching for you, Jesse", Mark said and went to the coffee machine. "Sit down, Lewis", he said to the other man, gesturing to the other sofa across Jesse's. When he had filled two cups of coffee, he sat down next to the man as well. "Jesse, this is my good friend Lewis Carter. Lewis, this is Jesse Travis."

Both men shook hands, nodding to each other. Jesse had never heard of this good friend, but considering how old Mark was and how good he was at making friends, he was not surprised about another one. Mark often came up with some old friends, which sometimes came in handy at a crime investigation. On the other hand his friends sometimes were the cause for the investigation, whether as a suspect or a victim. Mark tried to help as much as he could, which made him a very valuable friend. For Jesse, he was more than that. Almost like a father.

"Nice to meet you, Mister Carter", he said. The man looked nice and a bit excited. Jesse had no idea what about – certainly not about meeting him, there was no reason for that. Maybe because he had met Mark after such a long time?

"Nice to meet you, too", Carter answered. "Mark has told me a lot about you."

Jesse raised an eyebrow. He was sure Mark had not said anything negative about him, but still he wondered what he had told Carter – and why. "Only good things, I hope", he joked.

"Absolutely. I hear you are a good doctor, great with patients, popular with the personnel, things like that. Very good when there is chaos and a million patients at the same time. And running the Emergency Room in a very efficient and effective way. Is that true?"

Jesse was stunned. How could he answer that? He had never heard such praise of his skills before, not like that. Besides, he was sure his face colour had turned into the bright red of a lobster. "Well, I think so. Maybe. I do my best", he said, still unsure about his answer.

"Good. Because that's what we need", Carter said.

"He works for 'Doctors without borders'", Mark explained before Jesse could ask what Carter meant with 'we'. "I am sure you have heard of them. They do a lot of work in Africa, mostly in Congo, Ethiopia and Sudan."

Mark sounded as if he shared a lot of interest in their work, even though Jesse had never heard him speak about it before. Whatever the both of them wanted from him – Jesse slowly got an idea of that – Mark agreed with it. Which was a good sign. Jesse trusted the older doctor. When he found something reasonable, it probably was. Mark's son, Steve, certainly would not always agree to this. In a case they often argued about who the murderer was or what happened to the victim, but in the end it was usually Mark who was right. Still, he felt unsure about this whole thing.

"I really liked my job there", Carter added. "But I am growing old. I am not that fast anymore and my knowledge of emergency medicine has grown old with me. Besides, the warm temperatures, the climate, it's not doing anything good to my health. But I would like to continue my help, to give something to those people."

'Or someone', Jesse thought. And he was right.

"So I thought, maybe Mark knows someone. I worked with him many years ago and he always has so many connections and knows some really good doctors and…well, here I am. Asking you if you want to go to Africa. To Sudan, to be precise."

Jesse felt overwhelmed. Go to Africa, to Sudan? He was not very attentive concerning news about the many conflicts on the African continent, but he knew that there was a conflict in Sudan, a civilian war, which had lasted for many years now. He could very well imagine that those people needed help, that the health conditions in Sudan were deficient. He could also imagine being killed by some soldier or tropical disease.

"I – I don't know. It sounds interesting. I mean, not interesting, but, um, important. The work you do. I just…isn't it dangerous?" There it was. Dangerous. Even as he said it, Jesse felt silly. Had danger ever stopped him from doing something? Investigating with Steve? Surfing even when the weather was rough? Go on vacation with Susan? To his surprise, Mark nodded and even looked concerned. It might be silly, but maybe he was right.

"That's a good question. What do you think, Lewis?"

Carter shrugged. "Sure, it is. You have a war down there, between the people, between the SPLA and the government, even betweens some of the clans. Usually no one attacks staff or camps that belong to aid organisations, but I can't guarantee you that nothing will happen. No one can. You might also get ill, Malaria or Kala Azar. Or, worse, you might fall in love with the country and it's people and get your heart broken when you leave."

Lewis smiled as he said that last sentence. In a way it made Jesse feel reassured. If Dr. Carter was able to joke about something like that, it could not be that bad, right? And there had to be other people like him. If they dared to go there, why shouldn't he? Still, this was crazy. and sudden. He had never thought about this before and no idea what exactly the job Lewis Carter was proposing to him right now included.

"Well, um…it sounds okay, I think. I just-"

"Don't worry", Lewis Carter intervened. "You need not decide right now."

"Lewis, why don't you have dinner with us this evening? At the Beach House? Maybe Jesse has come to a conclusion then, or you can tell some more about the project", Mark suggested. He always liked having people over, cooking for them, sitting together and speaking about the day's events. This was a perfect opportunity. Apart from that, he probably knew that Jesse needed time to think about this.

"Sure", Lewis agreed, and so did Jesse. He looked at his watch. It was 11 a.m., Dinner would be in about 8 hours. 8 hours to come to a conclusion.

"You're kidding!" Steve's reaction was as dismissive as Jesse had expected. While Mark had grown very supportive and fond of the idea of him going to Sudan, his son seemed to be the exact opposite. He had been afraid of that. It was not Steve's decision to make, but his opinion meant a lot to him. Enough to change his plans if Steve did not consent at all.

"Sorry, no, I'm not. I really want to go there. It's important work they do down there, but there are so few doctors who are willing to help." The young doctor had laid out a bunch of arguments before going to dinner at the beach house, because he had known that they would be needed. He also hoped that Mark would put in a good word for him as well. The older doctor had known about his decision for a week now, ever since the dinner the two of them had had with Dr. Carter. Maybe that was still to come.

Steve shook his head in disbelief. "But it's still dangerous. You have never been to such a place, and with so poor protection. I mean, there is a war down there, right? And with all the health-care issues..."

"Which Jesse wants to help to eliminate", Mark chipped in. Since his return, Mark had spoken to Carter more frequently, and the more he found out about the doctor's work, the more he wished he could go there himself. But with his age this was no option. He was even older than his friend and even though he felt quite healthy, he knew that this job was more suitable for someone a few years younger. Like his young protegé Jesse Travis, whom he had grown fond of, both as a friend and as a doctor.

"I think it's a great idea", Amanda said, who had come over for dinner as well. Dion and CJ were looked after by their grandmother and the pathologist liked to spend her free-time with her closest friends. She, like Mark, did not even consider to leave for a country as unsafe and unstable as the Sudan, but only because of her children and her unfitting specialty. She had a responsibility to them, which was more important to her than anything else in the world. But she could understand Steve as well. Jesse knew how to get himself into dangerous situations, and she did not want her friend to be hurt or get sick.

"I still don't like it", Steve said. He had saved Jesse's life more than once. The idea of him being a thousand miles away would not have suited him even if it had been a relatively safe country Jesse would travel to. But this was Sudan. He had never been there, but Steve had served his time in Vietnam, which had been bad enough.

"I promise I'll try and stay out of trouble, 'kay?" Jesse promised between two forks full of spaghetti. "I even got some shots already. The next ones are scheduled for next week. I take malaria prophylaxis, I got vaccinated against hepatitis and ACWY and amaryllic typhus and..."

"Typhus? They have Typhus?" Inwardly, Steve sighed. He did not want to hear about this. He wanted to know that Jesse was safe and would remain that way during his stay. Or stay in LA in the first place. But he did not have any hope of stopping him. "No, wait, don't tell me. I don't want to know. You really want that, huh?"

Jesse nodded.

"Tell me when the flight goes off. Guess you need a ride to the airport", Steve said. Jesse answered him with a smile.

"Guess you are the cheapest one I can get", he answered.

It took Jesse another six weeks until he was scheduled to take the flight to Sudan. Before that, he had been interviewed and tested about his medical skills, his ability to work in a chaotic environment and his talent for spontaneity. He passed those tests without any problems and participated in an instruction training, in which he learned a lot of useful things, starting with the diseases he would encounter in Sudan and the way they were treated to the most common cultures and their traditions.

Nevertheless he felt very nervous when one day in early march he stood at the airport, surrounded by his friends and waiting for his flight. There were still three hours left until it would go off, but he had decided to come early.

"Don't you think we should sit down instead of watching you pace around for the next two hours?" Steve asked him. "You know, this ground is built of stone. Stone erodes if you walk over it too many times."

Jesse gave him a miffed look, even though he knew Steve was right. Not about the ground, but about him pacing around all the time. There was no sense in that. After all, he was well prepared. Or was he?

"Steve is right. Let's find us something to eat." Mark, who seemed to be eager for something to eat as well, led the small group, consisting of Steve, Jesse and Amanda, towards a Restaurant called Malibu Al's Beach Bar, where they took their dinner.

"I can't believe you won't be here anymore in a few hours," Amanda said. She had left the boys with their grandmother, so she could say goodbye to Jesse alone. The boys had already said their farewells a few days earlier, when they had a picnic at the beach.

"Yeah, not here but in Africa. I mean, it's so far away. I can hardly believe it myself." Jesse had never been so far away from home before. He had never crossed the ocean, never seen anything else but the American continent. This would be the biggest journey of his life so far.

"Just don't get yourself into trouble, right? Chief won't pay for that flight," Steve chimed in, which brought him a lot of laughter.

"Nah, don't worry. I'm sure everything is going to be fine."

"Me too," Mark said reassuringly. "Lewis told me about some situations, but he always came home fine. You are medical personnel, you should not have to worry too much."

Jesse nodded. They had told him that doctors and nurses were relatively safe. But there were always things that could happen. "I hope so."

"Well, it can't be more dangerous than here, right?" Amanda asked. "No genetically enhanced viruses, no crazy townspeople who want to condemn you of murder, no bombs, no drug companies that want to discredit you. I think you should be pretty safe in Sudan."

The four of them laughed at that, even though the memory of some of those events still bore some uneasiness. Sometimes Jesse could not believe how many things had happened to him during the past few years, and how he had survived all of them. Life in Los Angeles was dangerous, he felt, but it was great, too. The ocean, the beach, his friends – they all compensated for whatever danger he might find himself in.

"I would not be too sure about that. It's Jesse, you know. He is good at finding trouble," Steve said.

"Ah, you're doing me wrong." Jesse gave him a pouting face. Again, he knew Steve was right, but would never admit that to his best friend. "Trouble only finds me, probably because I always am so close to you."

"And why is that?"

"Because you need me – need us – to solve your cases, Detective Sloan."

"I…I don't. Not always."

"But often," Mark said with a soothing voice. "Though, none of us doubt that you are able to solve them on your own."

"Sooner or later," mumbled Jesse.

When the time to catch his flight finally arrived, the small group assembled in front of the security check-in. Mark and Steve embraced Jesse in turn, wishing him a good flight and a good time. Amanda gave him a hug as well and slipped something into the small bag he had with him. "So you won't forget us," she whispered into his ear. They said their goodbyes, then Jesse disappeared into the security check-in and into a new world.


	2. Expectations

**AN:** Sorry for the delay. I still don't have a Beta Reader and apologize for any mistakes in advance. Have fun reading!

Jesse and Anna passed border control, fetched their luggage and left the passenger terminal. In front of the airport Jesse mostly saw sand. Hot, reddish sand. A lot of cars – most of them white – where parked on some of the sandy areas in front of the airport. In the distance, behind the airport, Jesse could see what had to be the city of Juba. There were no tall houses, no skyscrapers. Just flat buildings along the horizon. He had seen the city from the airplane but had been way more fascinated by the White Nile that crossed the city to notice anything else. He had seen the Nile while flying over Egypt as well, but now he was much closer to the mighty river.

He had also seen that there were no paved roads that led out of the city, except the one to the airport. In a strange way, it reminded him of his home country with it's many fields and farms. It was different here, though – much of the landscape was just barren, without any sign of life and almost no agriculture.

Suddenly a car stopped in front of them, a white Jeep with a plastic roof and zipper windows. They were opened and gave away loud music from the inside of the car.

The door opened and out came a man, a Sudanese judging from his dark skin, with a big smile. He went around the car to greet them. For a short moment he looked at Jesse, then turned to Anna and took her in his arms.

"Welcome back, Anna", he said, still smiling. "We missed you here."

"Thank you, Achak. Missed you too", Anna answered, then gestured towards Jesse. "Achak, this is Dr. Travis. He is the new doctor."

Achak nodded and shook Jesse's hand. "Nice to meet you", they both said. Achaks hands felt rough, but strong. He was a rather tall guy, almost as tall as Steve, Jesse mused, but with less muscles. He wore a white T-Shirt, khaki shorts and sandals. His hair was curly and short and gave him the look of a young man in his twenties. Since Anna knew him Jesse assumed he belonged to the organisation – and he was right.

"Get in the car, both of you," he instructed them and took his seat at the driver's site as well. "They are all waiting for you."

Jesse stepped into the car, wondering who was waiting for them, but soon his mind was occupied with other things. They left the airport, drove past the city and reached one of the few paved roads around he city. But the road did not remain paved for long. Soon after they left the area surrounding Juba, the road split into two. They took the right one, which was firm, but not paved any more. Around him, there was mostly desert, spotted with some bushed and small trees. He saw no houses, no huts, not even an animal. This was Africa, he realised, and it was very different from where he came from. He tried to take in his surroundings and was busy to process all the information his senses gave him. The nature, the heat, the sounds, everything was new to him. Anna and Achak, who sat at the front of the car, were busy talking with each other, sharing everything they had missed since the last time they had seen each other. He would have felt ignored had he not been glad about some time to take everything in, including those two people who sat in front of him. He wondered how many more people he was going to meet today.

Suddenly Anna turned around, looking at him. "So, tell us Jesse, where do you come from?"

"Los Angeles. I mean...I wasn't born there. I moved to LA when I finished medical school, to become a resident. I was born in Illinois. It's quite boring there, you know. And they have nothing you can surf on", he added with a sheepishly grin. Surfing was, next to BBQ Bob and the hospital, the one thing he spent most of his time with. He loved surfing ever since he came to LA and was keen to improve his skills whenever he had the chance to.

"I am afraid we can't provide you with that, either", Achak said and Anna nodded. "Right, no surfing here. But we have soccer, the kids love it. And basketball."

"Yes, basketball", Achak added. "It's important. Some of them hope it's their way out of here. Their way to America."

When Jesse had researched about Sudan, he had found out about Manute Bol, the famous Sudanese who played in the NBA. But he had not known how important it was to the people who lived here. And it definitely was not his favourite game. When he was younger, he had to attend basketball lessons in PE. It had been awful, especially since nearly all other pupils, including the girls, were taller than him. He had enjoyed baseball, though, which had been much more popular in Elgin anyway. Soccer he had never played, but he knew it was huge in Europe.

"Um…soccer sounds interesting. Maybe I can learn it," he said, even though he knew almost nothing about it. A number of people trying to get a ball into a goal. It was really much the same as basketball, except that the ball was different, the goals bigger and you were not allowed to use your hands.

"Well, you can play with the kids, if you want to", Anna said. "But don't worry, you don't have to", she said, smiling at him. "I guess most of the time you will be too tired anyway. What kind of doctor are you? Emergency medicine, right?"

Jesse was glad he could answer this one on a positive note. "Yes, I am. Chief of Emergency. It's great, you know, you get to know so many people and there are a million different diseases you have to diagnose and wounds you have to treat. You can work with all kinds of people, the nurses and other doctors and…ah, I think I get a little bit carried away, sorry", Jesse excused himself, as he realised he had begun to enthuse over his work. He looked apologetically at Anna, but she only smiled at him.

"I'm glad to hear that. That's what we need, someone who likes his work. Lewis has done well, I think", she said, the last sentence addressed to Achak. The Sudanese nodded. "We do. I hope you will like it here, Jesse Travis. You should. I love this country, and I love the people who live here, even though the politicians are crazy right now. Things will get better, I know, but until then my people need help. I think you can give it to them."

"I will try", Jesse answered, swallowing hard. Great expectations always nagged at him, and Achak obviously had them. He would try his best, as usual, but how good would that be? He might be chief of Emergency in Los Angeles, but as of yet he did not know how helpful that was. This was a different country, with different people and different diseases. Lewis had told him that things would be very different, including the medical equipment. And drugs. How good was his work without his instruments, without his machines, without the right drugs? He was bit afraid of that. But time would show, he knew.

"What about you? Where do you come from?" Jesse asked, out of curiosity. He would spend a considerable amount of time with the two people in front of him and since they knew all basic information about him, he was very curious to find out about them. He could not place Anna's accent and he had absolutely no idea who or what Achak was.

"I come from Sweden," Anna answered. "From Värmdö, a town near Stockholm. It's filled with fish, porcelain and tourists. And it's cold. That's why I came her, to warm up a bit. You should have seen my children's faces when I told them – when they had moved out, they had expected me to live in our big old family home forever and for always, but I surprised them."

"I cannot even imagine a place so cold," Achak chimed in, laughing. Jesse had to laugh, too. He was sweating from head to toe and he came from a place where heat was nothing unusual. But this was different. This was hot. Warming up had certainly worked for Anna.

"And you, Achak? Do you come from Mongalla?" Jesse asked the man who drove their car. But Achak shook his head. "No, I was born in a very small village close to Juba. As soon as the war started we moved to Juba, my younger brothers and me. I was about 13 then and my parents wanted us to be saved. This was really unusual, they needed us to take care of the cattle. But our uncle offered to take us in, to which my parents agreed. Our mothers were heartbroken, though. Only their daughters and the elder sons remained."

"So you lived in Juba since then?"

"Well, yes and no. I lived there for a long time, I even went to school. By coincidence I started to work for a humanitarian organisation. Five years ago I was hired from DWB to work for them. They sent me to Mongalla to help build up the hospital. I did and I liked it there, so I stayed."

"Then Mongalla is a nice place to live?"

"You can put it that way, yes. Nice as good as it gets. It's dangerous, but there is no place in Sudan right now that isn't. But people are really nice and the town is really fine."

Anne nodded to what Achak said. "It really is. I like it there. I have been in Sudan for about three years now and right now I can't imagine to go home for more than a few days."

About one and an half hour later they arrived in Mongalla. They had passed the White Nile, since Mongalla lay on the right hand of the river, in opposite to Juba. The river had been so broad, Jesse had difficulties seeing the other shore. The city itself seemed way smaller, if one could call it a city at all. It consisted mainly of huts built of brickearth and with roofs made of straw or corrugated steel. The few streets were not paved and filled with chariots, goats and people dressed in modern clothes. Only few people wore what seemed to be traditional Sudanese clothes. Those who looked at them seemed very friendly, some of them nodded towards them, others smiled and waved. They probably knew Achak and Anna, Jesse assumed.

And then there were the children. They followed the Jeep, ran next to or behind it. And with every metre they became more. When they stopped in front of a bricked building at what seemed to be the village's centre, the children surrounded their car, screaming Annas and Achaks names.

"You have them with you, right?", Achak asked Anna, who nodded in response. Then she grabbed her backpack, opened it and showed it to Achak and Jesse. What he saw was a backpack full of sweets. Chocolates as well as candy drops and jelly beans. Outside the children were getting even louder. "I think you should take those outside before they scream down the whole city", Achak said, then stepped out of the car. Anna followed him, and so did Jesse.

It did not take longer than a few seconds to give away everything that was in the backpack. After they had finished, Achak and Anna lead Jesse into the building. On it's front he saw the DSF banner. He concluded that this had to be the hospital, or whatever they called it here. From the outside it looked like a very small building with two floors that was covered with a red roof. The windows and their blinds were opened. For a moment, Jesse wondered about this – after all, it was quite hot outside, but then he stepped into the building and realised that it might have been hot outside, but inside it was worse.

"Welcome to Mongalla Hospital, Dr. Travis", Anna said. "This is our lobby, which isn't very busy today, as it seems."

The room contained a desk that stood at the rear end of the room. On the left side of the room was a door that probably lead into other rooms. On the right hand were five chairs. Only one of them was seated, with a woman who looked slightly sick.

"Come on, I'll show you the rest." With that, Anna showed him around the whole hospital. The door brought them into a big room that was split in two. The first part seemed to be the examination room, with one bed, two chairs, some instruments, a med cabinet and even something that looked like a heart monitor. The other part of the room – which was four times as large as the examination part – was filled with beds. There were twelve beds total, two of them filled. At the other end of the room was another door, which led to the operation room. Anna also led Jesse up some stairs, where he found a small room with some more beds, a small kitchen and a toilet – and Lamara Wasiljew, a woman with straight, brown hair, who was probably three inch taller than him and had a strong, russian accent.

"Anna, you are back!", Lamara exclaimed. She embraced her colleague, shook Achaks hand and then turned to Jesse. "And you must be Dr. Travis. Quite young, are you?", she asked him, with a surprised look on her face. Then she smiled. "Anyway, I am Dr. Lamara Wasiljew. Feel welcomed." She offered him her hand, which Jesse gladly took.

"Thank you. It's nice to meet you", he answered, a bit overwhelmed by that tall, strong woman. And everything else.

That day, Jesse got to know a lot of people. There were of course Anna and Achak as well as Lamara and Noah, e a Sudanese of about 19 years who planned to become a doctor and spent nearly all of his time inside the hospital or with the doctors and nurses. Lamara was the only other doctor, he found out, while Anna was one of three nurses. The other two were Lucy and Max. Max had only arrived a few weeks before him, while Lucy, who came from Canada, had been stationed in Sudan for more than three years now. Max was of the same age as Jesse, while Lucy was only 24.

He spend his first evening in Sudan with his new colleagues and a nice warm meal inside the hospital. The patients – there were only two and both of them were able to sit – ate with them the stew that had been cooked for them by Noahs mother. Jesse was not sure about the stew's contents, but was soon appeased by the fact that it was merely beef that had been put in the soup. And it really tasted fine.

After the sun went down, the small group dispersed. Anna lead Jesse to his bed, which was one of those that stood in the room on the second floor of the hospital. He hardly got undressed and washed before he went to bed and fell into a deep, refreshing sleep.


End file.
